This lecture uses box models to quantitatiely investigate the hydrologic cycle and then provides a introduction to the tectonic cycle and the rock cycle.

Unfortunately, there is no information in the book on the quantitative treatment of box models. (although there are good examples of box models -- see fig. B1.2 and its explanation) You will have to rely on lecture and my lecture notes for that material. For an introduction to the quantitative aspects, there is a WWW page for an upper division Environmental Chemistry course at LSU. This page uses the same sources and examples that I do, but gets more advanced very quickly (but don't let that scare you off).

There is good information in Skinner and Porter for the rest of the material. Chapter 1 is a good place to start reading. It introduces language that we will use all quarter long. You can skip the section on The Solar System on pp. 19-23.

As for the internal structure of the Earth, understand the idea that there are two ways to think about layering within the earth:

  • Layers of differing composition
  • Layers of differing physical properties.
    You should be able to draw and explain both types of layering. We may not get to this stuff specifically in class, but it will help you understand what we do talk about. The differences between mantle, crust, lithosphere, and asthenosphere are epecially important.

    The Tectonic Cycle. Read pp. 27-43 carefully. The Ocean Basins: Be sure you know how to identify abyssal plains, oceanic ridges (or mid-oceanic ridges), and trenches on a map of the seafloor. Know the anatomy of the three kinds of margins: divergent, convergent, and transform. How would you recognize these three types of margins on a map? What processes operate at each of them?

    We'll talk about the hydrologic cycle quite a bit, so you'll want to be familiar with fig 1.25. Know the difference between igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks. In the sessions that follow, I will bring examples of these types of rocks to class. You'll also see them in lab. I will expect each of you to be able to classify a given rock into these categories.

    Stare at the rock cycle figure (1.27) and figure out what forces drive various portions of the rock cycle.

    Uniformitarianism is one of the fundamental concepts in the Earth sciences. Understand what it means and how its meaning has changed over the last 100 years. Why do some of the rates of geologic processes change over time?

    If you are reading this, could you please e-mail me and tell me what you think of it. I'm trying to decide how much this resource is used and how much energy to put into it. You're welcome to ask me any questions you might have as well.